The Internet and Shopping

I can't believe how much the internet has grown. There are far too many sites and things to signup for online. I had to signup for a billion things during my course in cyberspace. It was quiet annoying actually, but than again I'm not an internet enthusiast. I don't have a myspace account and I don't get involved in groups or anything that makes me have to socialize through the internet.

I do have certain accounts for online shopping and that is what motivates me to get on the internet. I'm a bargain shopper and I like to find the cheapest ways of buying what I want. When I think of buying something I automatically wonder if I could find that cheaper online.

Here are some little tid bits of online shopping:
http://couponing.about.com/od/bargainshop/a/hiddencosts.htm

Here are some statistics of online shopping:
http://www.gerrymcgovern.com/nt/1998/nt_1998_02_23_internet_shopping.htm
http://www.weboptimiser.com/search_engine_marketing_news/6090802.html

My Web Page

Oh my gosh, I have just finished my web page. I was assigned to create a personal web page for my cyberspace class. It was a pain in the butt to figure everything out. I made a big mistake and didn't read everything I was supposed to. I should have read more information before I jumped in and tried to make my page. I freaked out when I found out that I was using old software to build my page on. When I went to transfer it, the background wasn't coming up. Everything was functioning properly but the theme wasn't showing. I worked so hard and long on it. I didn't what to start over again, I was really freaking out.

I asked my teacher if there was I way I could make it work and there was. All I needed to do was make a page on the new software that would take you to my web page I created. You'll know what I mean if you go to it. It was really simple and everything turned out great. I'm proud of my web site. I never made one before. Go and take a look for yourself. Let me know what you think. It's not all fancy or anything but take a gander.

Here is my web page:
http://www.public.asu.edu/~amguerra/

Web Page Design

There is a lot of information to consider when you are creating a web page. I have to learn how it all works. What makes a good web page and what makes a bad one. Eventually we are going to be making one of our own. I have ideas planned out already, but I think it’s not going to an easy process. I’ve never made a web page before that I can remember. I think I might have in high school, but I’m not sure if it was a web page or the basic in computer graphics. There are certain basics to remember when created a web page and one of them is to limit your graphics to 1-2.

One of my roommate’s pet peeve is spelling errors. I can understand that and I think it should be one of the important aspects in web page design. Creating a web page, I would think can be a long process. It is easy to make errors and not notice them when you proofread the information. It is important to have someone else read the information and give feedback. My roommate can spot a spelling error in whatever she reads if there is one. I always have her proof read my writings before I submit my assignments. I can still have spelling errors even though I used spell check. Sometimes it automates the words and changes it to the wrong word. I hate having to reread my papers after I finish writing them, so I leave that up to my roommates. She’s so nice!!! 

If you are interested in creating a web page here are some good websites that give you the basics on what to do and what not to do.

The Dog House
http://www.doghause.com/top15.asp

Good Web Design Features
http://www.ratz.com/featuresgood.html

Wikipedia

I had to learn about Wiki today and it was pretty interesting. Our whole class had to edit an article on Wikipedia. It was about the content of our class for the first six weeks. I never knew you could edit and change content on Wikipedia. Most of the time, I use Wikipedia to find information for my research papers. I’m not sure how I thought Wikipedia was formed and I guess I never really thought about it. Now I notice all the navigation links that can lead you to recent changes or contents. I’m still not sure how everything works or how you become an editor. It’s amazing how people can add information to articles or even make new ones. I guess you learn something new every day. If you want to check out our article on Wikipedia you can click on the link below. If you already knew about this information sorry but I was astonished. If you don’t know about this editing stuff, take a look around Wikipedia and learn about Wiki.

Our Article
https://wiki.asu.edu/cyberlife/index.php/Cyberstuff2007Spring

Wiki
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wiki

Second Life

Today I was introduced to Second Life through my cyberspace class. It is a virtual world where you can go places and meet people from around the world. At first it reminded me of the Sims game you can play on your computer. I hardly ever play games on the computer. They are very time consuming and at times they can be addicting. My roommate can spend hours playing computer games. I’m more of an active person and like to spend my time outdoors. I also like to spend time with my family and friends and I don’t like to make time to use the computer. I only get on the computer when I need something.

The thing I liked about Second Life was the ability to fly. I really didn’t like all the sex and nudie pornography that showed up when you try and look for places to go visit. It’s free to set up an account with them. Some things you have to pay for if you what to get more involved with the program. They also have some free stuff to do there as well. You can go and check it out. You may like it more then I did.

Second Life
http://secondlife.com/

Usenet and Hawaii

I have just been introduced to Usenet and that was very interesting. I never knew there was such advanced discussion groups out there. I posted a message in the Hawaii group because I will be going there in May when I graduate. I will be going with some family and friends and I am very excited. It will be my first time in Hawaii and I don’t know what places are out there to visit while I’m there. I will be staying on Maui in the city of Kihie. I know there is a lot of fun stuff to do like snorkeling, scuba diving, and jet-skiing. I want to focus my time there on the beautiful places. The only one that I know of right now is The Road to Hona. Does anyone else know of any other beautiful places to visit there?

Also if anyone if looking to go on vacation to Hawaii, maybe even as your graduation present like I am doing. There are really good deals out there right now on plan tickets. Here is one if you want to check it out: **Hurry though because it’s a limited offer Ends 2/28.**

Travel Ticker
http://www.hotwire.com/travelticker/details.jsp?inputId=tbug-details&slotid=1&dealid=600830&nid=N-TTK-020&vid=V-9353&cid=c7924b4a1ca8d3991372d93216ca7af0&tracking=deal-title

Spam and Viruses

I have never really paid much attention to the spam mail I have received. I always would delete any e-mails that don’t concern me. I now understand how spam can become a big problem. The good thing is that there is a lot of information out on the web to educate someone who doesn’t know about spam e-mail and viruses.
I came across two websites that I think are useful. Trend Micro (http://www.trendmicro.com) has a large amount of virus protection products. They are in the Top 40 vender value in 2006. They also have all kinds of free products to use, of course all come with some stipulation. They have to make money somehow. They have a free virus scanner which scans your computer for viruses if you don’t already have the protection. If viruses are identified it lets you know that viruses were found, but to clean them you have to sign up for their software.
The Symantec website (Symantec, 2007) delivers security information. It is targeted mostly to commercial businesses, but I found a page that was interesting. It was called Threat Explorer and on this page it named current spam or bogus e-mail messages. It goes all the way back to 1999.
It was interest but long to read all the reading assignments. I know that I now have a great knowledge of virus hoaxes and spam e-mail to look out for. There is so much out there and it is very easy to believe what you read. It makes me think about what else is out there that isn’t true.

References
Symantec (2007). Threat explorer. Retrieved February 8, 2007, from http://www.symantec.com/enterprise/security_response/threatexplorer/risks/hoaxes.jsp
Trend Micro Incorporated (2007). Retrieved February 8, 2007, from http://www.trendmicro.com

Spam and Boulder Pledge

I learned about spam today and all the nasty things it is capable of. I have always hated spam e-mail. My roommate is a perfect example of a person who needs to take the Boulder Pledge. She is always receiving spam e-mail, such as chain e-mails and forwards them to other people. She doesn’t send them to me because when I give my e-mail out to my friends I let them know to only send me important messages. My e-mail is not for junk mail.
Spam
To read more information about Spam, here is a website to look into.
http://spam.abuse.net/overview/
Boulder Pledge
Here is the website to read and Please take the Pledge and Solemnly Swear.
http://bw.org/ube/boulder.html

RefWorks and APA Perrla

The RefWorks is a great tool if you can learn how to use it. I still have not been able to understand how to use this source but I want to. The tool I have on my computer is APA Perrla. I have had this citation tool for a year now and it has been working well. This is what I use to reference my papers. I had to pay for this download of APA Perrla, which is the only down fall because RefWorks is Free. I really like using APA Perrla and it is very user friendly.
RefWorks
Here is a site to start you in the right place to create an account for RefWorks.
http://www.asu.edu/lib/refworks/refwrksetup.htm
APA Perrla
Here is the website for the download of APA Perrla, if anyone wants to check it out. RefWorks might be working well for some people but not me.
http://www.perrla.com/Pages/1/2.aspx

Netiquette

These past weeks have been a struggle for me because I have never use the internet as much as I have been lately. Like I had said before, I only use the internet when I have to and I am not to internet savvy. For the most part it has been interesting but challenging.

I don’t have much to say or know of many interesting links to put on this blog. I will be keep everything short and to the point. It is hard for me to write about things I am not interested in and I will probably be mostly reflecting on the different site we go to for this class. I’m not interested in many things on the internet. I only use it for an assignment or when I need to look something up. Once I find what I am searching for that is the end of it and I do not ever explore the internet for fun.

Anyways, one of my assignments to look into was the Netiquette website. It showed the core rules of Netiquette, which to me is the proper etiquette for the online community. I believe this is basically saying, you need to behave with proper morals and values when you communication online. Treat one another the way you want to be treated. Take online communication seriously and perform ethically.

Here is the website to the Core Rule of Netiquette: http://www.albion.com/netiquette/corerules.html